Indictment of Detention Officers

This morning, it was announced that two Tarrant County detention officers were indicted for murder in the death of Anthony Johnson, Jr.

While inadequate mental health support resulted in Mr. Johnson needlessly being in the jail, this cannot excuse what followed.

The actions by jail staff which we saw so farcically and shockingly play out on the partially-released video, resulted from a mix of a toxic jail command climate, poor training, a lack of transparency on practices, and a demoralized prison detention force.

The actions of Officer Moreno and Lt. Garcia MUST be understood in that context.

Ultimately, one man is responsible for those conditions which led to Anthony and so many others not being with us today.

That man is Bill Waybourn.